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New Law: The Return of the Yellowstone Injunction

On December 20, 2019, A2554 was enacted to "[p]rohibit[] commercial leases from including a waiver of the right to a declaratory judgment action and states that the inclusion of such a waiver in a commercial lease shall be null and void as against public policy."

New Real Property Law section 235-h took effect immediately on signing.

Welcome back Yellowstone Injunctions - it's like you never left us in the commercial arena. Commercial tenants facing eviction should consult with an attorney to get an injunction immediately before they are evicted.

New Law: Prospective tenants can obtain history of gas & electric charges incurred

On December 20, 2019, Senate Bill S3585 became law.

This bill's purpose is that it "[r]equires gas and electric utility companies to make available to any landlord and lessor of residential rental premises, upon the request of a prospective tenant or lessor of a residential unit, information concerning gas and electric charges incurred from prior occupants of the dwelling."

The bill's justification explains that "[p]eople should have the right to inquire from a gas and electric company the amount of the bills being paid for heat and electric service by the prior customer before they move into a residence. They should not have to rely on a landlord or homeowner's word about how much it costs to heat a residence."

This new law, Public Serivce Law section 66-p, is effective on 4/18/2020.

No Certificate of Occupancy? No Rent, No Eviction Proceeding

On November 6, 2019, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed Assembly Bill 1646 into law. Assembly Bill 1646 amends the Multiple Residence Law and adds a new Section 302-a. The Multiple Residence Law applies to buildings with three or more units outside New York City.

Effective immediately, the new law prohibits the recovery of rent AND the commencement of an action for possession of a dwelling based on nonpayment of rent if the dwelling or structure occupied for human habitation does not have a certificate of occupancy or is not in compliance with the existing certificate of occupancy pursuant to Multiple Residence Law § 302.

The dwelling may be caused to be vacated for any nuisance or if it is occupied by more families or persons than permitted or is erected or occupied contrary to law. Such dwelling cannot be occupied until it or its occupancy has been made to conform to law.

Apart from a landlord being prohibited from recovering rent and possession of the premises through a nonpayment eviction proceeding, landlords should also be aware that violations may also be fined up to $500 or imprisonment up to a period of one year, or both.

Tenants of Properties in Foreclosure May Be in Trouble in 2015

According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), tenants comprise 40% of the families facing foreclosure.  In the past, many tenants did not know their homes were in foreclosure until they were forced to move out with little to no notice after the foreclosure sale date. Landlords had incentive to keep the foreclosure a secret from their tenants so that they could collect rent in the meantime. As a result, tenants had little recourse and were among the families hurt most by foreclosure.

In 2009, the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act was enacted in order to protect tenants of properties in foreclosure from being evicted from their homes without due notice. Under this Act, a tenant had the right to stay in the property until the end of his or her lease unless the new owner intended to live in the property. If the property were to be owner-occupied, a 90-day notice was required before the tenant could be evicted. Month-to-month tenants also required 90 days’ notice. No longer were tenants forced to move out within a few days of being given an eviction notice.

The Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act was set to expire on December 31, 2012 but Section 1484 of the Dodd-Frank Act extended it to December 31, 2014. Two bills, S.1761 and H.R. 3543, were introduced in 2013 to permanently extend the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act. However, neither bill has been passed, and it is unlikely that they will be passed in the next 2 days. It is possible, however, that the bills can be enacted retroactively in 2015.

Without this Act, tenants will not have the same heightened protections during the foreclosure process. It is imperative that a bill is passed to ensure that tenants are given due notice after a foreclosure sale date.